Artificial cerebrospinal fluid (aCSF) is a

buffer solution A buffer solution is a solution where the pH does not change significantly on dilution or if an acid or base is added at constant temperature. Its pH changes very little when a small amount of strong acid or base is added to it. Buffer solution ...

prepared with a composition representative of

cerebrospinal fluid Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is a clear, colorless Extracellular fluid#Transcellular fluid, transcellular body fluid found within the meninges, meningeal tissue that surrounds the vertebrate brain and spinal cord, and in the ventricular system, ven ...

that is used experimentally to immerse

isolated brain An isolated brain is a brain kept alive in vitro, either by perfusion or by a blood substitute, often an oxygenated solution of various salts, or by submerging the brain in oxygenated artificial cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). It is the biological c ...

s, brain slices, or exposed brain regions to supply

oxygen Oxygen is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol O and atomic number 8. It is a member of the chalcogen group (periodic table), group in the periodic table, a highly reactivity (chemistry), reactive nonmetal (chemistry), non ...

, maintain

osmolarity Osmotic concentration, formerly known as osmolarity, is the measure of solute concentration, defined as the number of osmoles (Osm) of solute per litre (L) of solution (osmol/L or Osm/L). The osmolarity of a solution is usually expressed as Osm/ ...

, and to buffer pH at biological levels. ACSF is commonly used for

electrophysiology Electrophysiology (from ee the Electron#Etymology, etymology of "electron" ; and ) is the branch of physiology that studies the electrical properties of biological cell (biology), cells and tissues. It involves measurements of voltage change ...

experiments to maintain the

neuron A neuron (American English), neurone (British English), or nerve cell, is an membrane potential#Cell excitability, excitable cell (biology), cell that fires electric signals called action potentials across a neural network (biology), neural net ...

s that are being studied.

Composition

One protocol for electrophysiology recording suggests the following composition for aCSF, with the pH and oxygen level stabilized by bubbling with carbogen (95% O and 5% CO): * 127 mM NaCl * 1.0 mM KCl * 1.2 mM KH₂PO₄ * 26 mM NaHCO₃ * 10 mM D-glucose * 2.4 mM CaCl₂ * 1.3 mM MgCl₂

References

Neurophysiology Electrophysiology Laboratory techniques {{Neuroscience-stub